BY LAURA BIEMMI, TRENDS EDITOR
The Melbourne Symphony Orchestra’s Ears Wide Open series is a concert experience like no other, guiding audiences through illuminating deconstructions of famous works and diving into their rich histories.
In our third interview with the series’ host, MSO’s cybec assistant conductor and assistant principal cello Nicholas Bochner, we look at the chosen repertoire of the series — Schumann’s Second Symphony, Wagner’s Tannhauser Overture, and Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony. And we discuss the musical, historical, and personal significance of these three masterworks of the Western canon.
Catch up on your reading and check out our first and second interview in this educational series, if you’d like a deeper view!
The MSO will break down and expose the inner works of Schumann’s Second Symphony, Wagner’s Tannhauser Overture, and Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony at Ears Wide Open. What makes this collection of works particularly appropriate for a ‘deep-dive’ into their historical and musical properties?
Each of these works is a true masterpiece and, like all true masterpieces, they work on multiple levels.
They all use the incredible musical instrument that is the orchestra superbly, they are full of wonderful tunes, they break important new ground in compositional approach, and they all connect profoundly with the temper of the time in which they were written.
While they all appeal on a first listening, they equally reward study and familiarity enormously — perfect for the EWO format.
How did you and the MSO go about selecting these works for the series? Were there some other pieces that nearly made the cut?
The works we choose for EWO are all works that appear in the concert season later in the year, so that provides a starting point for the shortlist. Then, we need to take into account the size of the stage at the beautiful Melbourne Recital Centre, which narrows it down a bit further.
For 2020, these three works really stood out as being worthy of a thorough examination.
You’ll be kicking off the series with Schumann’s Symphony No. 2. What does this particular work mean to you?
I find Schumann such a fascinating composer. As an undergrad student, I did a semester studying his piano works and was really drawn into his complicated world of literary reference, and the amazing layering of codes, ciphers, and hidden references that he puts into his music.
The piece really serves as a transition from Beethoven: Schumann takes Beethoven’s epic symphonic structure and combines it with his own deeply personal, sometimes almost domestic concerns in a way that foreshadows the symphonies of Mahler.
Wagner’s Tannhauser Overture, though often performed as a concert work its own right, is the only work in this series to be composed for the operatic stage. What can audiences discover from analysing at this overture that they might not get from the symphonies of Schumann and Beethoven?
Every composer has their own unique style and particular concerns, but I think it would be fair to say that Wagner was more out on his own than most.
Schumann and Mendelssohn, for example, were in agreement that Wagner knew nothing of the rules of composition. His aesthetic and world view are like no other and his ambition for the scope of his art surpasses nearly everyone. Seeing how these things inform his orchestral writing will show just how different his approach was to the symphonic composers.
It’s difficult to discuss the history of the symphony without acknowledging the behemoth that is Beethoven’s Ninth. Given that the work is so well known, what new insights will Ears Wide Open be bringing to this work?
There is no doubt that many great minds and musicians have written and spoken about Beethoven’s Ninth. The great value to the EWO audience is that we have the MSO right there on stage to clarify and explain the ideas being discussed, as only the actual music can.
I’m going to approach the third movement in particular, as this is actually the final movement Beethoven composed in traditional symphonic form before he broke the very mould that he had created, and had that tenor break in with the extraordinary line: ‘O friends! Not anymore these sounds!’
Of the entirety of the Western musical tradition, why focus on such a specific time and place — 19th Century Germany?
The choice of works is guided to some extent by practicalities, but also in this year of celebrating Beethoven, I think it is interesting to look at some of the works that spring from the same context.
Of all three works, which performance are you and the MSO most looking forward to presenting?
Difficult question! All three are such wonderful pieces and so different from each other. But I guess Beethoven’s Ninth just sneaks in front for me.
It’s a piece that I have studied, played, listened to, and returned to repeatedly for my whole life. It really is a part of me.
Will the Ears Wide Open series stick around for 2021? What can we expect from this series in the future?
I certainly hope so. The series is a wonderful tradition that was started by the late great Richard Gill AO, and is one that we would like to perpetuate for years to come.
I wouldn’t want to give away too much, but we can guarantee there will always be great music. In future, I think it could be interesting to look at some more recent compositions and start to break down some of the anxiety that I think some audiences feel about new music, and a survey of compositions by women would make for some great explorations.
Watch this space!
The MSO’s educational Ears Wide Open series kicks off with Schumann in the Melbourne Recital Centre this 2 March. Visit the MSO website for more.
There will also be a free wine tasting in the lobby from 5.30pm, courtesy of TarraWarra Estate. Yummy.
We’ve teamed up with the MSO to take you backstage with the Ears Wide Open series! Did you read Laura’s earlier interviews with Nicholas about this educational initiative? Catch up here, and here!
Image supplied. Always drink responsibly.
